


Then there were three.

by softyjseo



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Alpha Johnny, Alpha Ten, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Alternative Universe - Kingdom, Arranged Marriage, Forbidden Love, M/M, Polyamory, at the end, commission, guard Johnny, omega kun, other members mentioned - Freeform, princes Kun and Ten
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-04
Updated: 2019-11-04
Packaged: 2021-01-22 21:20:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,999
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21308773
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/softyjseo/pseuds/softyjseo
Summary: Kun knew that, technically, everything could go horribly, horribly wrong. If his father ever found out he was sneaking out of his chambers at night and meeting up with a palace guard, he would probably be locked in his living quarters for the rest of his life until an alpha prince or king stepped up and offered the right price to marry Kun.And when a prince stepped up, things didn't go as Kun had thought they would.This is a commission.
Relationships: Chittaphon Leechaiyapornkul | Ten/Suh Youngho | Johnny/Qian Kun
Comments: 4
Kudos: 166





	Then there were three.

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first commission written for [Avi!](https://twitter.com/Avi_ani_2) thank you so much for commissioning me!! I hope you enjoy!
> 
> Those who want to commission me can find me on [twitter!](https://twitter.com/softyjseo) shoot me a dm! my commission form is buried under my tweets so if you want, dm me and I'll send you the link to it!
> 
> enjoy!

Kun knew that, technically, everything could go horribly, horribly wrong. If his father ever found out he was sneaking out of his chambers at night and meeting up with a palace guard, he would probably be locked in his living quarters for the rest of his life until an alpha prince or king stepped up and offered the right price to marry Kun.

His mother and father were greedy people and to them, Kun was nothing but an assessment, an investment to later on sell and gain back their energy and money that they had invested in Kun to make him the omega he is today, hopefully with a hefty profit.

Kun sighed, looking out of his window into the palace gardens. The land stretched out till it reached a forest, dark and looming. It looked scary, intimidating, but Kun had always wanted to go in there. As a child his mother had to stop him from running into the forest often enough, even going as far as making his play time even shorter than it already had been. It had given tiny Kun less time to run across the land and enter the forest and his maids and scholars more time to give him classes and teach him how to be a proper omega.

Kun knew how to be proper. Sit straight, behave well, to keep his mouth shut whenever he wasn't referred to in a conversation and so much more. It was tiring, but Kun had given up on fighting it. He knew he was supposed to marry Ten Lee, a prince from the Lye Kingdom across the border.

He had never met his alpha, his future husband, but the thought of him made Kun's skin crawl. He had never had this feeling before, such a deep hatred for someone without haven given them a chance to prove themselves. And yet here Kun was, seated on a velvet chair as he stared into the dark night, thinking of ways to escape his future husband and live a life somewhere out in the long fields that the Kingdom of Treana held. Maybe he would even go further, across the ocean to live in the unknown kingdoms there.

Kun tried not to laugh at himself as he waited and new scenarios popped into his brain. He was waiting for the telltale sound of boots walking on the path of gravel below Kun's balcony, a rock hitting his windowed door before Kun would get up and climb down the wall to the earth and let Johnny, a palace guard, have him for the night.

Johnny Seo had started working for the Royal Family just over two months ago, when one of their oldest palace guards died and new ones were called up to take his place. Johnny, more often than not, worked the gardens and outside grounds, working out for the both of them more than perfectly.

They met due to a midnight craving Kun had had on the third night of Johnny's stay. He had snuck down to the kitchens without his mask, something he always wore when he went out into the world as The Prince of Treana, to get a snack as fast as possible, his aim to be back in his living quarters within a few minutes.

Johnny, however, had made that very difficult to do. Kun had almost tripped on his feet when he walked into the kitchen and was met with the taller alpha, his scent overwhelmingly new to the sensitive nose that Kun possessed. Johnny had just been there to grab some water, as he later explained.

To Kun's great surprise, Johnny hadn't recognized him. Well, Kun and Johnny had never met before so if Johnny had recognized him it would have been something to be concerned about, but Johnny hadn't recognized him as the Prince.

And that had allowed for their conversation to go smoother, simpler. Kun hadn't had a casual conversation with anyone ever since he was a child, playing with the children that would sometimes visit the castle. It was a breath of fresh air. They talked while they walked, Kun munching away on an apple while Johnny sipped on his glass of water.

Before Kun knew it, Johnny had walked the two of them to the living corridor of the palace servants and workers. Kun flushed red at the cheeks at the realization, completely haven forgotten that Johnny didn't know who he was. Kun thanked the lords above for the fact that both of his parents were on a multiple day trip to some villages along the border. If they had seen Johnny take their precious little omega prince that was their gold mine to the living hallways of their servants, they would have Johnny be beheaded on the spot.

"I assume this is where you sleep?"

Kun hummed, hiding his small smile behind his apple core.

"I am one of the kitchen workers." The lie left his mouth before Kun could stop it, eyes widening for a split second before he composed himself. Johnny nodded, smiling at Kun.

"That is fun, I suppose?" Kun snorted, shaking his head.

"It is,, interesting, that is for sure."

"How come I have never seen you before tonight?" Johnny asked, frowning.

Kun shrugged, heart hammering in his chest as he tried to come up with a blatant lie that would cover his absence. Johnny slept in one of the rooms in this hallway and they would have had to run into each other at least once if Kun lived here, too.

"I was away visiting family. I returned early this morning."

Johnny made a noise in the back of his throat that sounded like a chuckle and Kun smiled. The alpha seemed to believe him.

"That would make sense. I started working for the Royal Family three days ago." Johnny mused. Kun hummed, turning to walk down the hallway and hoping Johnny would follow. He did and as if the lords above had listened to Kun's prayers, they arrived at his room within a few steps.

"This is me."

Kun nodded, waving shortly as Johnny waved back. "Will I see you around?" Kun bit his lip before nodding.

"Yes, you will."

From that moment on, Johnny and him saw each other around the castle from time to time. It was always at night, however. Kun couldn’t afford to leave his sleeping quarters without a mask covering his face during the day. There were officials walking around the castle during that time and Kun was not allowed to show his face to them. In favor of protecting it, or so Kun had heard from his mother.

They would take walks around the grounds, sometimes sitting outside as they talked. Johnny shared stories from his life before working inside the castle walls, recalling memories of having a scholar but being bad at education. His parents signed him into the military after Johnny stated he would give up on an educational job, and that had landed him here.

Kun had to lie, no matter how much it hurt, when Johnny had asked him about how he ended up in the castle. He made up a story of how his mother had passed and how his father had never been very rich, so they could use the money. According to Kun he had worked in a restaurant in the capital for a while before he was reassigned to the castle kitchen.

Johnny bought the story, luckily, before they moved on to a different conversational topic. Their conversations were divers, never really stopping. Kun found himself only being quiet whenever he needed to breath or when Johnny was talking himself. This was rare. Kun almost never talked, had never had someone he felt as comfortable with as he did with Johnny.

It was odd and Kun felt guilty, but he couldn’t stop. Especially not after seven months of knowing Johnny.

But, all good things came to an end, or so Kun’s grandfather used to say. His parents announced that he was to be wedded to Lee Ten, the second prince of a neighboring kingdom and an alpha that Kun had never seen before.

What hurt the most was that he could not convey his feelings and sorrow to Johnny. He couldn’t tell the alpha about it because to him, Kun was just a mere kitchen worker with a questionable sleeping schedule, nothing more and nothing less.

Kun, along the way, had given himself the false hope that somehow, he would end up with Johnny, living happily ever after.

He had found himself thinking about the alpha during his heat that had hit him right in the middle of their friendship. They weren’t able to speak for several days, Kun being tended to by palace staff and kept in his room for the five days that his heat lasted, in fear of his parents that the omega would get grabbed and his innocence would be stolen.

It happened when the King walked into Kun’s room while the omega was reading one cold winter day. Kun had snuggled up under a duvet next to the fireplace, sat on a bunch of pillows he had gathered while the antagonist of the story fought for his life in a war. It felt oddly comforting to escape to a different world, a world that wasn’t Kun’s own.

His father had made the announcement as if it had meant nothing to him. As if Kun’s happiness didn’t matter to him. From the very first time Kun had heard his name, he started to hate Ten’s guts. He knew this would make things harder, more difficult to ease into the fact that yes, he was going to marry Ten and he was going to have to live with him for the rest of his life, but he honestly didn’t care.

He had to keep quiet to Johnny. They talked still, shared hugs and Kun even went as far as kissing the alpha once. Johnny had kissed him back before pulling away quickly, his eyes wide and shoulders tense. Kun almost felt bad for kissing the alpha but then Johnny had leant in again, beginning where they left off.

It became a habit. They didn’t give it a title, chose not to, but held hands in hidden places and kissed when no one was looking and Kun had deemed it safe enough. The day that Ten was supposed to arrive was coming closer and closer and Kun felt himself growing angrier and angrier each day.

Kun knew that Johnny was able to tell something was off but he never mentioned it, something Kun was grateful for. He didn’t want to open the can of worms that was him being the crown prince in an arranged marriage that his parents forced him into because of stupid political reasons. Johnny would probably never talk to him again.

“Your Majesty?” Kun let his eyes travel upwards to make eye contact with the servant that was standing in front of him while he was seated. Yukhei bowed to him, making Kun smile. Yukhei was a new servant, Kun’s guard of sorts, and had only been at the castle for a few weeks. He was childlike and full of happiness and Kun liked having him around.

“Prince Lee has arrived.” Kun swallowed heavily, his heart aching in his chest. He hadn’t seen Johnny in a week, having chosen not to show up to their meeting place. He didn’t want to hurt Johnny more than he already was.

“I will be there in a moment.”

Yukhei nodded, bowing his head before marching out of the room. Kun sighed, putting down the book he had been reading. He had found himself sucked into books more often after the announcement of him being engaged had been made. It made it easier to escape his own reality.

Over the last few weeks Kun had sort of made his peace with his fate. There was no way to change it, no way he could fight it without being sentenced for treason or something along those lines, and Kun knew this. He had sort of accepted the fact that he was going to marry Prince Ten, and that that was going to be it for him.

Maybe, along the way, the two of them could grow close. Kun had a little bit of hope they could at least become friends, but he didn’t allow himself to hope for much. Ten was probably one of the worst people Kun knew. Ten had been the one to agree to this, as far as the omega knew. This was partly Ten’s fault.

But Kun wanted to be civil at best, so he stood up, put his book down and walked through the door. He had been instructed not to wear a mask for their first meeting and Kun was nervous. What if Johnny was walking around the corridors somewhere? What if the older alpha saw him and would never talk to Kun again?

“Where are they?” Kun asked as he arrived at the end of his living quarters. Yukhei opened the door and waited for Kun to walk through it, before starting to walk. Kun followed him quietly, his head down as he watched his own feet move over the tiles.

“His Majesty Prince Lee seems nice, your Highness.” Yukhei spoke up.

Kun smiled, knowing that the younger was trying to ease his nerves with soft and kind words. He appreciated it, but Kun couldn’t believe it. He had prepared himself for an old, ugly and arrogant alpha prince that would never love Kun like Kun could love Johnny.

Kun wasn’t sure whether Johnny loved him, too.

The omega prince was wearing a mask, the silk soft against his cheeks. It was a white color, matching the robes he was wearing. His head maid had said it made his legs look better and his eyes pop.

Kun called it bullshit, but he didn’t tell her that. The woman was just doing her job.

“We have arrived, your Majesty.”

Kun hummed, dismissing Yukhei with the wave of a hand. The younger bowed deeply before scurrying off.

When the agreement was made that Kun was to be married to prince Lee, the alpha prince had requested for their first meeting to be without an audience. If he had listened to his own demands, Kun was about to walk into an empty room except for the man he was going to marry in four short weeks.

Kun sighed, clenching his eyes shut and balling his hands into fists. He was supposed to knock, was instructed to do so, and so he raised his hand and knocked on the wood of the door.

He waited for what felt like an eternity for permission to enter, and when a soft voice said for him to come in, Kun opened the door.

“Good afternoon, your Majesty.” A voice spoke up, making Kun freeze his movements right after opening the door completely.

He moved his gaze from the floor up to the room, eyes roaming to find whoever was behind such a sultry voice. He was met with what Kun assumed to be prince Lee standing in the middle of the room, dressed in dark green robes and a small smile on his face.

Kun swallowed.

This is not what he had expected. He had expected an older prince, too hideous to find his own lover and therefore _paying _to marry a prince omega instead. He had expected harsh eyes, not the friendly ones that were looking at him now.

Kun felt like he was going to faint.

“Good—Good? Good afternoon, your Majesty.” Kun bowed his head, his hands immediately behind his back. His parents had trained him for this moment and despite his urge to run away and never return, he wanted to at least make them proud once before he would screw this marriage up.

An awkward silence presented itself and Kun was surprised, to say the least. All the alphas Kun had had the pleasure of meeting in his life were self-centered, arrogant and could never stop talking about themselves, their accomplishments or the amount of money they had spent on a toy from the east.

Except Johnny, but that hurt too much to think about.

Kun had expected prince Lee to be like that. Had expected a just as arrogant and self-centered prick to stand before him. Instead, when he raised his eyes from the ground, he found prince Lee’s left hand shaking with what seemed to be _nerves_ and Kun thought it was adorable.

“I pray your journey from your Kingdom was a joyous one.” Kun then said, more out of formality than anything. Of course, he hoped prince Lee had enjoyed his journey, but there was other stuff Kun cared more about.

“It was long, but very good.” Ten said, a smile growing on his face. Kun’s returning smile was small, but he felt himself glad that Ten had had a good journey.

“May I ask you something, your Majesty?” Prince Lee’s confidence had returned, his voice no longer as shaky as it had been upon their first greeting.

Kun nodded, “As you wish.”

It wasn’t like Kun had any power to refuse. Prince Lee was an alpha and his fiancé now. Kun had no right to refuse him anything until the alpha had told him it was okay.

Prince Lee smiled, resting one of his hands on the back of a dark blue couch next to him.

“Could you do me the great honor of removing your mask?”

Kun gasped, his eyes growing wide. He had never removed his mask for anyone before. He had never been allowed to, his parents forbidding him from showing his face to the world. Kun was just too ethereal, according to his mother, and it was just too great of a risk.

The only person who had seen Kun without his mask was Johnny.

But prince Lee was his soon-to-be-husband now, and Kun listened.

He reached up to untie the two laces tied up in a knot that kept the mask safely secured, the garment falling away and slowly dropping to the floor as Kun looked up once more.

Prince Lee’s eyes grew wide and Kun noticed his right-hand twitching in the corner of his eye.

“You are—ravishing, your Majesty.”

Kun felt his cheeks heat up with a blush, closing his eyes and biting his lips from smiling. He didn’t want to smile at prince Lee. The only other person who had seen Kun smile an actual smile was Johnny, and he didn’t want to show anyone else.

“Than—thank you.” Kun politely replied, bowing his head ever so slightly. The man in front of him smiled back. He put his arms behind his back, taking a more formal stance once again.

“Would you accompany to dinner at nightfall?”

Kun looked up again and no matter how hard he had wanted to say no, he couldn’t. This man was going to be his betrothed, his husband, and he could never chance that. He wanted Johnny, but the world had made it clear that that was not an option.

So Kun nodded.

Later that night, Kun found himself being undressed by Yangyang, one of his younger maids, the dinner behind him.

It had gone okay. They had talked small talk, mostly. Kun had preferred to listen to prince Lee—Ten, as he was told to call the alpha from now on—and had gotten to know him a lot better. It got better when Ten explained that he had never agreed to this marriage either. His parents had set him up to this much like Kun had been set up to do this without his own opinion being listened to.

It was so different from what Kun had expected. Ten was kind, and whenever Kun talked without given permission Ten never stopped him. He even told Kun that it was okay to talk whenever he felt like doing so.

Only Johnny had ever told Kun that.

But the most important part was the fact that the alpha hadn’t bought him. Hadn’t been the one to force Kun into marriage with him. Ten had been forced into this agreement much like Kun had been.

That changed everything a bit, altered the way Kun looked at Ten. Maybe they could become companions. Kun wasn’t hoping for love, no. He wasn’t that deluded, but perhaps they could become friends, strong enough partners for each other so that they could lead the Kingdom well enough one day, when the time came.

Kun waved Yangyang off, excusing himself so he could take a bath alone and wash his day away.

Kun winced when his foot touched the water, his skin getting used to the heat much slower. The days had grown colder and therefore Kun’s skin had done the same. Tingles shut up and down his spine as he wade into the small pool that represented his bath tub, succumbing his body to the heat as it reached his shoulders.

Kun knew Johnny was somewhere out there. He felt bad for having left the guard without a word, a reason, but there was no other option. Ten was Kun’s future now, and he had to make peace with that.

The omega sighed, letting his knees buckle. His head was quickly submerged in the water, the heat making his face tingle before he surfaced again.

He hoped the alpha was okay.

The first week of having Ten around was awkward at best. Neither of the princes were one hundred percent comfortable with the arrangement yet, and it didn’t help that Kun’s parents had given them zero guidelines to work with.

The weeks after that become easier, the two of them growing closer and one night Ten even kisses Kun after taking the omega back to his room. Kun hadn’t expected it but had allowed it, kissing Ten back.

They had gotten to know each other a little more and shared hobbies. Kun had confessed his love for reading and Ten had rushed away to find his favorite book and lend it to Kun. They not only shared a love for reading, but taking walks too. They even went horseback riding once and had a picknick in the forest behind the palace.

Kun had told Ten the stories of how he had tried to sneak out into the forest as a child and the alpha had laughed, eyes crinkling as the afternoon sun casted a glow on him that made Kun’s heart skip a beat.

Kun hadn’t forgotten Johnny, however. And it seemed that Johnny had not forgotten him either. He saw the guard in the corridors of the kitchens a few times but before Johnny spotted him, Kun had ran off.

The possibility that Johnny had found out about Kun being the Prince instead of a kitchen worker grew day by day. Whenever Ten and Kun would walk around the castle together, Kun never wore his mask.

Therefore, he had asked Yukhei and Sicheng—one of the guards guarding the Royal living chambers—to watch out for Johnny. The guards hadn’t asked questions after receiving said order, they weren’t allowed to even if they wanted to despite also being sort of Kun’s friends, and had walked off to continue their duties.

Kun missed Johnny. He still loved the older alpha, but there was also the feeling of adoration for Ten that had grown in his chest. The alpha was comforting, his scent something Kun had found himself looking forward to whenever the alpha wasn’t near.

“Are you finished?” Ten asked, pulling Kun back to reality. They were seated in the dining hall of Kun’s living quarters, sharing dinner together much like they did every night.

Kun hummed, staring at his food that had now grown cold. “I am not hungry.”

Ten shook his head, “Please finish your food. You need it.”

Kun listened easily, finishing the last few bites of his meat before eating the beans that were left on his plate.

Ten had been in the castle for over two months now and the two of them had grown fairly close. They acted much like a couple in the first stage of a relationship, slightly awkward when initiating affection but comfortable enough to talk about whatever.

It came as a surprise to Kun, at first. How he could feel this adoration for Ten but also still think about Johnny every single day, wishing to have him, too.

“I saw this stunning guard the other day, Kun.” Ten spoke up, eyes glistening with mischief as he joked. Kun rolled his eyes, throwing his napkin onto the table in fake offense.

“What did you do, fiancé?” Kun let the title slip and Ten grinned at him.

“I talked to him, of course. He was very nice.” Kun giggled, rolling his eyes once again.

“Did you get his name, then? Maybe we can invite him over for dinner.” Kun wiggled his eyebrows, waiting for Ten to respond. Ten looked deep in thought, trying to remember the name of said guard.

“If I remember correctly, his last name started with an S? His first name is John? No—wait—”

“Johnny?” Kun asked, straightening in his seat. According to what Yukhei and Sicheng had reported to him, Johnny had not given up on finding him. He would sometimes ask the other guards if they had seen Kun around, according to Yukhei.

Kun felt his heart ache as Ten nodded feverishly, snapping his fingers. “Yes! Correct!”

Ten frowned then, noticing Kun’s facial expression changing from a smile to shock. “Have you met him before?”

Kun clenched his jaw and closed his eyes. He could be honest and tell Ten the truth and possibly ruin what they had built up over the past few months, or he could lie and hope Ten would buy it. The problem was that Kun wasn’t the best liar –his stories to Johnny could prove that and Kun was still thankful that Johnny was just extremely oblivious—and Ten was a professional at reading people.

The omega sighed, putting his utensils down. “Promise me you will not get mad, Ten.”

Ten frowned, “Why would I get mad at you, Kun?”

“Because—because Johnny and I used to have a secret relationship prior to our relationship.” Ten gasped, dropping his own knife onto his plate with a loud ‘clang’ echoing through the room. Kun winced, closing his eyes as he waited for the rush of anger that he was certain would come.

“You—you dated him?” Ten asked, his voice wavering.

Kun shook his head, “We never gave it a title.”

Ten swallowed, “Does he know you are to be married to me?”

Kun shook his head, “I refrained from telling him I am the prince. He thought I was a worker from the kitchens when we first met and I—I never corrected him.”

Ten chuckled at that, surprising Kun. “I cannot say I blame you, Kun. He is very handsome.”

Kun’s eyes widened. He knew that Ten came from a Kingdom where people were more open to different things, where people were more progressive than they would ever be here. He knew Ten was more openminded and free spirited than he had expected the alpha to be, but he had never expected for Ten to be okay with this. At all.

“You—you are not angry?” Ten shook his head at Kun’s words, making the omega relax in his seat.

“Of course not, Kun. On one condition, however.” Kun nodded,

“Anything.” He didn’t want to ruin what Ten and him had. He would do whatever the alpha wanted him to do to make things right.

“We invite him over to have dinner with us tomorrow night.”

And they did. Kun was hesitant at first and telling Johnny the truth was probably one of the hardest things he had ever done in his life, but after the initial shock had settled within the alpha, everything had gone rather smoothly.

It was confusing how right it had felt, all three of them together. Kun had to take several double checks during the dinner, when Johnny and Ten were lost in conversation and he felt his heart jump. It felt like happiness and that was an odd emotion for Kun to feel.

Things were still confusing but adding Johnny to their relationship felt right for everyone. He belonged with Kun and Ten. Revealing it to the public was going to extremely difficult and Kun was sure his parents would never approve, but once they were officially Kings, Kun was sure they could change some things around the country for the better.

For now, Kun was content with sneaking Johnny into Ten’s and his living quarters at night. He usually found himself sleeping in between the two alpha’s who held hands across Kun’s stomach, effectively caging the omega in the middle.

Ten and Kun were forced to travel more as months went by and to prevent separation, Kun made Johnny his personal guard. Despite the excitement of finally leaving the castle walls, traveling came with its negatives; Ten and Kun’s relationship became more and more public and the wedding date grew closer every time Kun woke up in the morning.

Things weren’t going to be easy. Kun still felt guilty about lying to Johnny, despite the alpha telling him a hundred times that it was okay, that he understood Kun’s decision to do so. The future was impossible to predict, but the three of them had hope everything would turn out okay.

They had grown to love each other, their hearts making place for one more person. Kun felt happiness for the first time ever in his life despite having to hide one reason for his happiness behind the title of ‘personal guard’ instead of boyfriend.

Things were going to be okay.


End file.
